Religion in the media: A look at recent books and Web sites

This is a mixed collection of Sabbath songs. Lovers of tradition can celebrate with tunes such as "Mah Tovu" sung to a Chabad melody, and "Yismechu Hashamayim," put to a Hassidic melody. Those who prefer contemporary songs will appreciate [Susan Colin]'s interpretation of De...

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Published in:Knight Ridder Tribune News Service p. 1
Format: Newsletter
Language:English
Published: Washington Tribune Content Agency LLC 10.11.2004
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Abstract This is a mixed collection of Sabbath songs. Lovers of tradition can celebrate with tunes such as "Mah Tovu" sung to a Chabad melody, and "Yismechu Hashamayim," put to a Hassidic melody. Those who prefer contemporary songs will appreciate [Susan Colin]'s interpretation of Debbie Friedman's "Mi Shebeirach" and "Sh'ma/V'ahavta." [Charles Freeman] writes about the history of ideas and their connection to power. He describes how the attitudes and methods of the Greek philosophers were displaced by those of Christian theologians. This long, well-written book demonstrates that what arose to replace reason was not faith, as the subtitle asserts, but rather authority. It was, Freeman writes, the closed and controlling stance of the Christian church that replaced the open and exploratory tradition of the Greek academy. The site also throws in Islam, Christianity and Judaism in the mix, and, interestingly, the list of links under these categories are fairly conservative in viewpoint. Under Judaism, you'll find sites on keeping a kosher kitchen; under Christianity, there are conservative sites such as Handmaidens 4 Christ, an online women's fellowship.
AbstractList In "Creating True Piece," [Nhat Hanh] continues a teaching tradition beautifully exemplified in his poems, children's stories and other writings. He simplifies his beliefs through analogy -- the direct, obvious symbolism is composed by sparse, sophisticated writing. In one passage, he recalls a fable in which a peaceful Buddha transforms flying arrows into flowers that fall at his feet. He also relays stories in which catastrophe was averted because others maintained compassion. Hanh believes tenderness can turn violence into love, anger into peace. His lessons show the possibilities -- they're as beautiful as breathing itself. "Jesus the Jew is an emotionally charged synonym for the Jesus of history as opposed to the divine Christ of the Christian faith that simply restates the obvious fact ... that [Jesus Christ] was a Jew and not a Christian." So begins the latest in a formidable series that seeks "to determine what kind of a person Jesus of Nazareth was by firmly setting (him) in the real world of first-century Palestinian Jews." "Not Just 'The Widow of ...'" profiles Myrlie Evers-Williams 40 years after the assassination of her husband, civil rights leader Medgar Evers. She attributes God's grace with getting through the period right after the murder, but she admits, "Hatred gave a reason to move forward." That was until, "I was talking to friends shortly after Medgar's death, and my daughter interrupted me and said, 'Mommy, you sound as though you hate those people, and Daddy said you shouldn't hate.' That snapped me out of it." Evers-Williams raised her family while getting a bachelor's degree in sociology and has started the Medgar Evers Institute to focus on reconciliation. The Cultural Crossroads section looks at a new sculpture in New Orleans called "Spirit House." The outdoor tabernacle honors the city's black ancestors with images of deities from West Africa and has the words: "The Ancestors' shadow gives us refuge from ignorance."
Reading an evangelical Christian's view of Judaism, one might assume -- perhaps unfairly -- that the author will dismiss Judaism as "incomplete" without Jesus. Instead, this author writes about how his understanding of Jesus was enriched by an encounter with the Jewish faith. [Athol Dickson], a Dallas architect, wrote the book after attending Temple Emanu-El's weekly Chever Torah study for five years, a journey that is instructive in itself. Dickson began as a "lurker" who said little, disquieted by participants' vigorous, seemingly irreverent debates about Scripture. Gradually he began to speak up; on one occasion he even shouted in a heated disagreement over the extent of Christian anti-Semitism. After the class, members surrounded and hugged him, a moving scene that led him to write, "The Jews of Chever Torah have taught me -- have shown me -- how to love my neighbor as myself." With clear, brief explanations, this Web site offers an excellent introduction to Hinduism framed for Western sensibilities. The visitor walks through the history, customs and beliefs of Hinduism as well as worship practices and holy days. It's "Hinduism 101" but it doesn't read like a textbook. Click on "features" for interesting reads such as "Jesus through Hindu Eyes" and an article on the origin of the word "thug" (from ancient gangs that committed murder following religious rites to honor Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction.) Links to news outlets round out the visitors' new knowledge with current events related to Hinduism.
[Allan Levine] is himself a "classic" Diaspora Jew of the 20th century: a Canadian descended from a family that lived for years on the western edge of the Russian empire. He tells about himself first, then goes on to write about others he has "met" only through study and imagination: the wealthy and honored Abravanels of Queen Isabella's Spain; l'affaire of France's Alfred Dreyfus in the late 1800s; Jews who fought for their native land, Germany, in World War I, then saw it turn against them. His is a wandering tale that moves from royal courts to backwater towns, from gloried respect to frenzied fear. Above all, it is a saga of survival. After Catholic schooling and training in Judaism, the young Einstein rejected those traditions and became a devotee of the Dutch philosopher Spinoza. Writer Mark Hawthorne says that like Spinoza, Einstein believed that what exists "likely extends far beyond our human ability to perceive and analyze it." As to the theory of relativity, "the system of [Hindu] tattvas also regards matter as a form of energy. The major difference is that Einstein did not appear to speak in terms of consciousness as Hindus do." Downloading music is the subject of the Trends column. Executive Editor David Batstone writes that a Gallup Youth Survey "shows that only 15 percent of 13- to 17-year-olds think that downloading music is 'morally wrong.' " Batstone likens the practice to recording TV shows with your VCR, which the Supreme Court has ruled legal. He sees irony in the recording companies, "long notorious for ripping off musicians and songwriters" now presenting themselves "as the champions of the artists' livelihood." He says the recording industry needs to adjust to the new reality of file sharing.
"Messengers on High" displays the rabbi's vocal, guitar and theological depth. "Yism'chu" celebrates the Sabbath with a touch of Flemenco. There's also a remake of "Who Let the Dogs Out?" As the rabbi sings, "Who Led the Slaves Out?" children chime, "[Moses], Moses, Moses." The hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, is one of the five pillars of Islam -- an act of piety that every Muslim aspires to complete at least once in his or her lifetime. With its origins dating back to the time of their prophet Abraham, the hajj begins Feb. 1 this year and will bring together up to 2.5 million Muslims from around the world to their holy city. This site is accessible to the uninitiated inquirer, but comprehensive enough to offer insights to those familiar with Islam. Click on the "Step by Step Guide" for a virtual hajj with photos and descriptions of each day of the pilgrimage. There's a "Hajj Introduction for People of Other Faiths." The link to "Hajj tips" offers a glimpse of the spirit of charity and unity that Muslims experience when making hajj.
The fawning tone is almost obnoxious. [John Paul II] is a "superstar of peace," a "tireless pilgrim," a "colossus." The early images, however, are captivating. Often grainy and out of focus (who knew they were photographing a future pope?) they show a young man fully immersed in life. There's [Karol Wojtyla] out for a stroll in sunglasses and beret, Karol shaving on a camping trip, Karol kayaking. (In one hiking photo, he's wearing what look unmistakably like black Chuck Taylor's All-Stars.) [John Cornwell], a British journalist, wrote the 1999 best seller Hitler's Pope, which argued that Pius XII was a lifelong anti- Semite who didn't break a sweat to condemn the Nazis. That book, bitterly denounced by the Vatican's defenders, may have helped derail plans by the current pontiff to beatify Pius XII, the wartime pope who died in 1958. In his new book, Cornwell writes that John Paul II "has matched remarkable talents with corresponding frailties and foibles." He makes a case that the pope has grown irredeemably autocratic in his 26 years on the throne, undermining the authority, discretion and integrity of local bishops and badly weakening the church he loves.
Rabbi [Ron Isaacs] starts with God and ends with such hot topics as Kabbalah and the Jewish renewal movement. In between, he covers many subjects in a user-friendly question-and-answer format. Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, respected commentator on Jewish issues, calls the book "an extraordinary collection of questions, an extraordinary collection of answers." It is a quick, easy reference to basic Jewish beliefs, with chapters on the Bible, worship, and Israel. Various practices and points of view are presented, along with welcome sections on inter- group relations and anti-Semitism. There are also valuable compendia on Jewish denominations and classic Jewish books. Sound like a lot to pack into relatively few pages? Well, its author has a doctorate in education as well as rabbinic ordination, and has written many brief, informative books, including a series of Every Person's Guides to holidays, prayer, sexuality, and death and dying, all in the Jewish tradition. His sound scholarship flows forth in an informal style that assures painless reader involvement and learning.
His unflinching conviction that God's chosen people were defined by love of Jesus alone not by lineage, not by obedience to the Torah and certainly not by circumcision was what ultimately separated Christianity from Judaism. "Jesus is Christianity's founder," Dr. [Bruce Chilton] writes, "but [Paul] is its maker." The professor's writing is refreshingly conversational, except when it slips to cutesy. The stabs at sounding hip "Pharisaic homeboys," "wannabe apostle" are lame. And many Catholics will raise an eyebrow at his offhanded observation that in Jesus' mind, the bread and wine didn't really stand for his body and blood, but were just symbolic. One of the best features but not an easy one to find is the Obscure Bible Passage of the Day, in which [Allen H. Brill] sets out to debunk literal interpretations of Bible texts. Whether you agree with him or not, it's a thought-provoking alternative to the "sound-bite theology" that often dominates debate. (Scroll through the blog on the home page until you find a link to "Obscure Bible Passage of the Day.")
This is a mixed collection of Sabbath songs. Lovers of tradition can celebrate with tunes such as "Mah Tovu" sung to a Chabad melody, and "Yismechu Hashamayim," put to a Hassidic melody. Those who prefer contemporary songs will appreciate [Susan Colin]'s interpretation of Debbie Friedman's "Mi Shebeirach" and "Sh'ma/V'ahavta." [Charles Freeman] writes about the history of ideas and their connection to power. He describes how the attitudes and methods of the Greek philosophers were displaced by those of Christian theologians. This long, well-written book demonstrates that what arose to replace reason was not faith, as the subtitle asserts, but rather authority. It was, Freeman writes, the closed and controlling stance of the Christian church that replaced the open and exploratory tradition of the Greek academy. The site also throws in Islam, Christianity and Judaism in the mix, and, interestingly, the list of links under these categories are fairly conservative in viewpoint. Under Judaism, you'll find sites on keeping a kosher kitchen; under Christianity, there are conservative sites such as Handmaidens 4 Christ, an online women's fellowship.
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Copyright (c) 2004, The Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
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Snippet This is a mixed collection of Sabbath songs. Lovers of tradition can celebrate with tunes such as "Mah Tovu" sung to a Chabad melody, and "Yismechu...
"Messengers on High" displays the rabbi's vocal, guitar and theological depth. "Yism'chu" celebrates the Sabbath with a touch of Flemenco. There's also a...
His unflinching conviction that God's chosen people were defined by love of Jesus alone not by lineage, not by obedience to the Torah and certainly not by...
The fawning tone is almost obnoxious. [John Paul II] is a "superstar of peace," a "tireless pilgrim," a "colossus." The early images, however, are captivating....
[Allan Levine] is himself a "classic" Diaspora Jew of the 20th century: a Canadian descended from a family that lived for years on the western edge of the...
Reading an evangelical Christian's view of Judaism, one might assume -- perhaps unfairly -- that the author will dismiss Judaism as "incomplete" without Jesus....
In "Creating True Piece," [Nhat Hanh] continues a teaching tradition beautifully exemplified in his poems, children's stories and other writings. He simplifies...
Rabbi [Ron Isaacs] starts with God and ends with such hot topics as Kabbalah and the Jewish renewal movement. In between, he covers many subjects in a...
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Christ, Jesus
Colin, Susan
Cornwell, John
Crafton, Barbara Cawthorne
Dickson, Athol
Edwards, Dwight
Eldredge, John
Farrell, Bernadette
Freeman, Charles
Hanh, Nhat
Harrison, Kathryn
Hogan, Susan
John Paul II (Pope)
Plocheck, Robert
Seeger, Pete (1919-2014)
Strand, Clark
Tomaso, Bruce
Vermes, Geza
Warner, Brad
Winner, Lauren F
Wojtyla, Karol
Title Religion in the media: A look at recent books and Web sites
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